A subcommittee exploring state retiree health plans on Monday voted to recommend that the General Assembly codify putting 1% of the state budget into a fund that pays retiree benefits to lower the billions of dollars of deficit. The State Employee Benefits retiree subcommittee asked Cheiron, a consulting firm, to look into additional ways for the state to lower the …
Kent, Sussex child care centers may get higher Del. payments
A bill that would force the state to pay Kent and Sussex County child care programs the same fees that it pays New Castle ones seems headed to the Senate floor. No one spoke against Senate Bill 59, sponsored by Sen. Kyle Evans Gay, D-Arden, when it came up Wednesday in the Senate Health & Social Services Committee. Gay said …
Teacher’s union gets 1 wish: Pay committee moves meetingÂ
Delaware’s state teachers union got one of its wishes Monday when the state committee charged with adjusting the salaries of public school workers announced it will push its monthly meeting back an hour. Mark Holodick, education secretary and chair of the Public Education Compensation Committee said at the start of Monday’s regular meeting that starting next month, the committee will …
Teachers union calls for pay committee to #MoveTheMeeting
Delaware’s teachers union is circulating a petition that demands a state compensation committee move its monthly meeting time an hour later so teachers can attend. Right now, the Public Education Compensation Committee, which is considering raises for teachers and other school workers, meets at 3:30 p.m. Lack of teacher voice “If you want to hear from educators, hold meetings when …
More legislation in the works to address teacher shortage
A bill that would help address the state’s lingering concern over a teacher shortage was unanimously released by the Senate Education Committee Wednesday. House Bill 430, now headed to the Senate floor, would encourage schools to begin a Grow Your Own Educator Program, which supporters believe will improve recruitment, retention and diversity of teachers in the First State’s public schools. …
Bill to ban colleges asking about criminal history sparks debate
A bill that would prohibit higher education institutions from asking about an applicant’s criminal history is headed to the Delaware House. It drew a lot of comment during a hearing Wednesday in the Senate Education Committee and ultimately passed with one yay and three on its merits. It was approved Thursday by the Senate, sending it to the …
Conservatives marshal forces as school board elections near
Republicans are going all in this year to support their candidates for school board elections that take place in three weeks. The Delaware State Republican Party is sponsoring a “Super Saturday Day of Action” Saturday to encourage volunteers to meet candidates and help them campaign The right-wing Patriots of Delaware this week sent out an email saying “it’s time to …
Contentious right-to-know school bill likely to fail in committee
A bill that would require schools to publish information about what’s being taught and what materials are being used sparked a lively debate in committee. Photo by Unsplash. For a hot second, it looked like a bill that would require schools to tell the public exactly what materials are being used for teaching, among other things, was going …
Proposed bill would suspend teacher appraisals, which are based partly on student performance
Instead of evaluations, the bill suggests having teachers continually observed to provide coaching and support for hybrid and remote learning.